'Scandalous' Pamela Anderson drama she refused to watch is now free to stream

A scandalous drama series about the early career of Baywatch star Pamela Anderson has recently been made free to watch.

Despite receiving critical acclaim, it generated intense backlash for its depiction of one of the most controversial showbiz stories of the 1990s and was blasted by Anderson herself, who refused to watch it.

As the beloved TV icon joins Liam Neeson in the long-awaited Naked Gun revamp, coming to cinemas next week, now’s the perfect time for fans to remind themselves of Anderson’s rise to superstardom.

As part of a new package deal with Disney+, the eight-part limited series Pam and Tommy is now available to stream completely free on ITVX, along with several other titles from the streamer’s catalogue.

Chronicling Anderson’s chaotic three-year marriage to Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee (played by Sebastian Stan), the drama explores her identity as a sex symbol while her personal life comes under intense scrutiny when their intimate honeymoon video is illegally distributed across the United States.

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While it received generally positive reviews from critics, particularly for its performances by Stan and Lily James, the star herself told Variety she refused to watch it and claims she deserves “a public apology” from the team behind the series.

“It was shocking,” Anderson admitted. “Tommy probably thought it was funny.

“I remember Tommy writing me a note saying, ‘Don’t let this hurt you like it did the first time,’ because he had heard through the kids that I was kind of struggling with the idea of bringing this all up again.

“I don’t think he was portrayed kindly. I just know that I refuse to watch it.”

Nevertheless, TV fans insist the series is an eye-opening watch despite the controversy.

A five-star Google review raved: “When I first heard they were doing this I was skeptical but I Binged watched it twice!!

“It was Very Thought Provoking actually Quirky, upbeat,funny, emotional, dark and very well paced. All the characters were cast very well.”

Someone else defended the decision to tell the story: “Even though this is not endorsed by PA herself as she feels this just victimizes her again and takes away her ability to tell her story, I really think the producers did a fair job in showing just how unjustly she was treated at the time.

“Although some of the events are not quite in order, timeline wise, it still shows how objectified she was at the time, and thus demoralized and dehumanized - and sadly how many famous women today are still treated this way!!!

“This was a cautionary tale of how some things still haven't changed.”

And another said: “It’s a shame Pam Anderson hated the series. If anything I think this series painted her as the only sympathetic character.

“In hindsight of #MeToo and women telling their stories, the fact that she went through any of this is shocking.”

Are you ready for a hearty dose of scandal or will you be giving this provocative biopic a miss?

Pam and Tommy is free to stream on ITVX.